A gun show without guns? Essentially

Expo in Rosemont lacking in rifles, handguns, bullets for sale

January 27, 2013|By Dahleen Glanton, Chicago Tribune reporter

Colleen Lawson. of Lawson Handgun Instruction, and Joseph Lavecchia, of Illinois Carry, put up a display about gun training at the Chicagoland Gun Show in Rosemont on Friday. (Alex Garcia, Chicago Tribune)

There was an 1854 Lefaucheux pinfire pistol carbine on display, as well as an 1876 .22-caliber derringer in a glass box. But neither was for sale.

It wouldn't have mattered if they were. The gun enthusiasts who showed up in Rosemont on Friday for what was billed as the first-ever Chicagoland Gun Show didn't seem interested in gawking at antique pistols. Some wanted to buy high-powered rifles, semi-automatic handguns and high-capacity magazines.

But there wasn't a single gun dealer at the show, only a Chicago collector who said he was there to show off his collection.

"I've been to a lot of gun shows, and this is not a gun show, no matter what they call it," said Kevin Olandese, 37, of Schaumburg.

Within an hour of the Friday afternoon opening of the three-day event at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, people who had paid $10 for advance tickets online and $12 at the door were asking for their money back.

"The last thing I want to do is for a guy to go to his car and come back shooting," said Levine, who organized the gun show in conjunction with the well-known Chicago Outdoor Sports Show, which has taken place for more than 30 years. "We do have guns here, they're just 100 years old, and you can't find any gunpowder for them."

Rick Rosalina, managing partner of Outdoor Sports Group, said organizers didn't try to deceive people. The problem, he said, is that he couldn't recruit any local gun dealers for the show, largely because most are short of inventory. In the Chicago area and across the country, guns began flying off the shelves after President Barack Obama's re-election in November, and sales escalated in December following the school shootings in Newtown, Conn.

Rosalina said the event was never advertised as a traditional gun show. Instead, he said, he planned a symposium with more than 30 workshops aimed at educating the public about firearm safety and Illinois gun laws.

The event was always about outdoor sporting, he said, adding that he never intended to have high-powered weapons available.

"This show is not about assault weapons," said Rosalina. "It's about shotguns and hunting guns."

Duane Tinsley, 56, said he drove in from Rockford hoping to buy ammunition for his assault rifle. It is almost impossible to find the ammunition online or in gun shops, he said, because of the demand.

"Everybody is out of stock," said Tinsley. "If you do find it, it's expensive. It's usually 30 to 40 cents a bullet. Now, it's $1 to $1.30. Pretty soon, it could be up to $2 a bullet."

Colleen Lawson, one of the plaintiffs in the U.S. Supreme Court case that led to Chicago lifting its handgun ban, said the event still offers an opportunity to educate people about guns.

"We would like to spread education and truth behind gun ownership and safety," said Lawson, standing at a booth with representatives from pro-gun groups. "We're all against violence. But Illinois and Chicago have kept people from understanding the real problem. Nobody is talking about how to stop the violence."